Raquel Rastenni
Encyclopedia
Raquel Rastenni born Anna Rachel Rastén, was a popular Danish
singer. She was born in Copenhagen
, and grew up in a little apartment in the poor central part of the city. Her Jewish parents had immigrated to Denmark from Russia at the start of the 1900s. Her father was a tailor, and her mother was a seamstress.
She started her career as a dancer in the Helsingør Revue in 1936 and had her debut as a singer in 1938, when she was also broadcast on radio for the first time. She sang with various orchestras through the early 1940s and in 1940 formed her own swing
trio. That same year her first record was released. She also toured during these years in Sweden
.
As a Jew, she fled Denmark in October 1943 along with her family, as the country had come under Nazi
occupation
. She spent the rest of the war
years in Sweden where she continued having great success with her career, performing with orchestras and in cabaret
s and varieties
. Her jazz singing style has been compared to that of Ella Fitzgerald
.
She returned to Denmark in 1945 and in the years that followed she became Denmark's leading female ballad singer. Among her successes were Vovsen i vinduet ("(How Much Is) That Doggie in the Window?
") in 1953 and Heksedansen ("The Witch Dance") in 1960. Her best-selling song was Hele ugen alene ("Seven lonely days") in 1953, which sold over 120,000 copies. She was the first artist in Denmark to earn a gold record. She continued to garner awards throughout her career.
In addition to her Danish language
recordings, she recorded also in Swedish
, Yiddish
and Hebrew
.
After qualifying in the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix to represent Denmark at the Eurovision Song Contest
, she participated in Eurovision Song Contest 1958
where she sung Jeg rev et blad ud af min Dagbog (I Tore A Page Out Of My Diary). She ranked number 8.
She participated once more in the Danish Melodi Grand Prix, singing a duet with Grethe Sønck
entitled Hjemme hos os ("At our home").
In the late 1980s she retired from public life. She died in Skodsborg
in the northern part of Sjælland on the day before her 83rd birthday.
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
singer. She was born in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, and grew up in a little apartment in the poor central part of the city. Her Jewish parents had immigrated to Denmark from Russia at the start of the 1900s. Her father was a tailor, and her mother was a seamstress.
She started her career as a dancer in the Helsingør Revue in 1936 and had her debut as a singer in 1938, when she was also broadcast on radio for the first time. She sang with various orchestras through the early 1940s and in 1940 formed her own swing
Swing (genre)
Swing music, also known as swing jazz or simply swing, is a form of jazz music that developed in the early 1930s and became a distinctive style by 1935 in the United States...
trio. That same year her first record was released. She also toured during these years in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
As a Jew, she fled Denmark in October 1943 along with her family, as the country had come under Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
occupation
Occupation of Denmark
Nazi Germany's occupation of Denmark began with Operation Weserübung on 9 April 1940, and lasted until German forces withdrew at the end of World War II following their surrender to the Allies on 5 May 1945. Contrary to the situation in other countries under German occupation, most Danish...
. She spent the rest of the war
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
years in Sweden where she continued having great success with her career, performing with orchestras and in cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
s and varieties
Variety show
A variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and sketch comedy, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Other types of acts include magic, animal and circus acts, acrobatics, juggling...
. Her jazz singing style has been compared to that of Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
.
She returned to Denmark in 1945 and in the years that followed she became Denmark's leading female ballad singer. Among her successes were Vovsen i vinduet ("(How Much Is) That Doggie in the Window?
(How Much Is) That Doggie in the Window?
" That Doggie in the Window?" is a popular novelty song written by Bob Merrill and Ingrid Reuterskiöld in 1952. The best-known version of the song was recorded by Patti Page on December 18, 1952 and released by Mercury Records as catalog number 70070, with the flip side being "My Jealous Eyes". It...
") in 1953 and Heksedansen ("The Witch Dance") in 1960. Her best-selling song was Hele ugen alene ("Seven lonely days") in 1953, which sold over 120,000 copies. She was the first artist in Denmark to earn a gold record. She continued to garner awards throughout her career.
In addition to her Danish language
Danish language
Danish is a North Germanic language spoken by around six million people, principally in the country of Denmark. It is also spoken by 50,000 Germans of Danish ethnicity in the northern parts of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where it holds the status of minority language...
recordings, she recorded also in Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
, Yiddish
Yiddish language
Yiddish is a High German language of Ashkenazi Jewish origin, spoken throughout the world. It developed as a fusion of German dialects with Hebrew, Aramaic, Slavic languages and traces of Romance languages...
and Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
.
After qualifying in the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix to represent Denmark at the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
, she participated in Eurovision Song Contest 1958
Eurovision Song Contest 1958
The Eurovision Song Contest 1958 was the third Eurovision Song Contest. The convention that the winning country from a year hosted the following year's contest was introduced in this year. France's win was their first. It was the last time to date that the United Kingdom did not enter the contest...
where she sung Jeg rev et blad ud af min Dagbog (I Tore A Page Out Of My Diary). She ranked number 8.
She participated once more in the Danish Melodi Grand Prix, singing a duet with Grethe Sønck
Grethe Sønck
Grethe Sønck was a Danish actress and singer.Sønck was born in Hjerm, located outside Struer, she was originally named Grethe Ingeborg Nielsen Hald, but changed name toSønck in 1968...
entitled Hjemme hos os ("At our home").
In the late 1980s she retired from public life. She died in Skodsborg
Skodsborg
Skodsborg is a small town/suburb approx. 20 km. north of Copenhagen, Denmark. The town has a population of 1,169 and lies in Rudersdal Kommune. The town is a coastal town but doesn't have a marina....
in the northern part of Sjælland on the day before her 83rd birthday.